Chapter Thirty-Nine
The girl’s soft weeping stabbed at the back of her brain. Between the chloroform and crying, she couldn’t focus on anything the freak said.
“Wow, you stirred up some shit.” Greg dragged Dale to the other side of the room. Smaller by six inches, he struggled with the sheer bulk of her prom date’s body. “Taylor sure does have a hard-on for you,” he huffed.
“Don’t know what you mean.” Her head spun from the drugs, but once she saw his face, everything rushed back. After her fight with Levi, she tried to call Gil. Certain she heard the back door creak open, she went into the kitchen, and Greg attacked her.
She’d tried to fight him off, but he shoved the cloth of chloroform over her face before she could grab the syringe hidden in her boot. With the plunger at her fingertip, she couldn’t reach it.
He must have waited outside until Levi left. “There’s no way I would have figured out you were the infamous crime writer E.G. Leighton, but Taylor did. She had plans to release the information to the press and discredit you. Don’t worry, she’s not involved in this mess, but her pyscho bitch mentality sure did help.”
“Sounds a bit farfetched,” she mumbled.
“Anyone else, I would think it was bullshit. Isn’t it funny how Levi’s crap finally caught up with him?” He chuckled while positioning Dale’s body against the wall. “Growing up, he got away with everything. He was the freaking golden boy… Oh well, this wasn’t planned, if that’s what you’re wondering.” He quickly switched subjects before he took out a gun and placed it in Dale’s hand. Pointing to a place above their heads, he fired off a round in the wall. The girl sobbed harder.
“Kidnapping us does not reassure me of that.”
“If you were looking to lay blame, I’d start with this idiot.” He shoved Dale’s head before he dropped the gun in his lap. “Back in high school, he and his dad where peddling kiddie flesh to all of his rich friends. To look the other way, they offered St. Geneva’s sheriff girls and money. Of course, Shawn’s shitty father took them up on both. If you thought grooming was just for girls, you were wrong. The sheriff would offer us beer and let us shoot off guns.”
A far-off look entered his eyes as he stood up and crossed over to the fireplace. Appearing ominous and slightly deranged, Cayden didn’t interrupt him.
“One of the girls wanted out.” He gestured toward Britney. “Shana was getting help from that teacher. Mr., Mr.…” He tapped his finger against his head. “Donahue,” he blurted out, seemingly pleased with himself that he remembered. “Thinking they were safe, they went to Sheriff Cooper, ratting out the whole sex ring. That immoral ass promised to investigate, but first he went to Dale’s dad and shook him down for more money.
“He roped me, Shawn, and Bud into the whole stupid mess. Honestly, if Levi didn’t leave us that night to go be with you, prom, I think… What?” he said, probably in response to her stunned expression. “You didn’t think we knew? Yeah, if it wasn’t for you…” He shrugged. “Sheriff Cooper hated the Scott family. I really feel that if Levi was around that night we wouldn’t be here right now.” Greg stared wistfully at the fire. “God, you screwed everything up.” When he turned toward her, his green eyes seemed darker as hate contorted his boyish features.
“Sorry, Greg, I don’t think it was me who raped and killed that girl.”
“Shawn’s dad did that shit,” he hissed. “We were forced to get rid of the teacher’s body. None of us knew he was going to do it.”
“What about all the missing girls who came after Shana?”
“Fucking Bud!” He grabbed the side of his head with a scream. “Don’t you get it? We’ve been stuck together ever since Sheriff Cooper offed that girl. There’s nothing we could have done to stop him.”
“If he gets caught, then you all get caught.”
“Exactly.” Every single one of them held city offices in St. Geneva. For years, they were forced to have each other’s backs, whether they wanted to or not.
“What about Dale?”
Greg shook his head. “Rich boy was oblivious. The sniveling snake may have done his father’s dirty work, but…” He stared at Dale’s limp body before he stepped in front of her. “Unlike the rest of us, he didn’t have blood on his hands. Life went on for the jerk. Why couldn’t you just leave well enough alone?”
“Because we found her…”
“Yeah, that sucks. Now imagine watching her being killed,” he said before he crossed the room.
Greg couldn’t be working alone, she figured.
“Oh well.” He opened the door and walked out.
“I’m untied,” Britney squeaked.
Cayden almost forgot about the girl. Her crying seemed to peter out some time ago.
“Loosen me up, then get back in your seat. He won’t be gone long.”
Britney dropped her ropes and jumped up. “Were you talking about Shana Waters?” Using her little hands, she worked fast to loosen Cayden’s ropes.
“Yeah, we went to school together.”
“There was a story about her ghost haunting the woods when I was a kid. What the hell does this even have to do with us?”
“Good question,” Greg said from the door. “I was just getting to that part.”
****
Snow made his trek much harder. The roads weren’t cleared off, but the storm had slowed up. As Levi pulled off onto the back trail, his cell phone rang. Levi hit the talk button on the truck.
“Mr. Scott, this is Agent Thornton. We just arrived at Goosebay Lake Resorts and found one Fire Chief Buddy Longwood beat to a bloody pulp.”
“Did you ask him how he got that way?” Levi asked.
“He’s not exactly in any shape to talk.”
Thick, untouched snow forced him to slow his speed down to a crawl. He would have to abandon his truck to make it up the hill.
“Bud’s always been a clumsy shit. Maybe he fell a few times.”
“Uh huh. I know you served in the military with Agent Juggerson. We worked together and he used to say the same damn thing. Look, this call was supposed to be about an Amber Alert, but I’m going to need some answers before I dispatch my men up there to Gleason Pond.”
With no road left, Levi stopped the truck. Maybe a mile farther. He would have to make it up the hill on his own. At least he wouldn’t have to do it in the dark. The sun slowly moved above the horizon.
“Do you really expect me to confess to an illegal act on a federal phone call?” Levi got out and grabbed his shotgun.
“This is my personal cell, and like I said, I used to work with Juggerson. What the hell am I dealing with here?”
“A thirteen-year-old murder at Chesterfield, four missing girls since then, and an Amber Alert.” He flipped his sniper’s rifle over his shoulder. He had two revolvers in chest holsters and one on his ankle. Not to mention a hunting knife hidden in his vest.
“What do you have to do with all of this?” the agent asked.
“They took my business partner.”
More condescending than humorous, Agent Thornton chuckled. “Yeah, your dad said you’ve been friends with the fire chief since you were kids. No one beats a friend like that over a business partner.” Refusing to get into semantics, Levi grabbed his camo baseball cap and moved out of the way for Belle to get out of the truck. “Does this partner have a name?”
“Yeah, Cayden Young.”
“Holy… Dammit. Crap! Shit!” As the agent must have realized his whole career would circle the toilet if he didn’t hurry the hell up and send his agents to save her, Levi waited. “Okay, I’ll text you once my men are near. Just do me a favor and put down your guns. I don’t want a shootout at the O.K. Corral.”
“Will do,” he said before he disconnected the phone. At least a foot of the soft stuff covered the path. It had been a while since he made the trip to the fishing cabin.
Snapping his fingers for Belle to follow, he headed up the snow-covered road.